The Brothers Julien: Book One: Zorane
by J.R.R. Not-Tolkien
Summary: While cleaning out Master Chen's island fortress, Zane stumbles over a forgotten prisoner who carries a secret Zane never expected. I know, summary stinks, but it's the best I can do without giving the plot away (cover image is mine).
1. House Cleaning

1\. House Cleaning

Zane navigated the corridors of Chen's labyrinth with something like disgust. The last time he was down here wasn't a very good one. Well, it was kinda good, but the rest of the times he spent down here were not his favorite memories. For one thing, he had thought his memory had been wiped completely, and if it hadn't been for Pixal, he wouldn't have realized they were just dormant. Then, he had his powers stolen by Master Chen and imprisoned in a cell down here in the maze of corridors.

But the thing he had hated most were the nightmares. He was haunted by dreams of a terrifying ice dragon, and falling into a cavernous hole. But there were more to his nightmares than that. Occasionally, he veered away from this repeating dream and experienced something more puzzling to him. He saw flashes of bright blue and faint calls of a voice. It sounded like a young man's voice, weak and tired, calling out, " _Remember me . . . remember me, Zane . . ."_

It confused Zane. He wondered who the young man could be, and what his mysterious plead could mean. How could this stranger know his name? Or even know who he was, for that matter? And why did he ask Zane to remember him, when he didn't even know him?

He was pondering this as he traversed the labyrinth. " **Zane, stay on track.** "

"What?" He jerked his head up out of his thoughts, slightly confused.

Pixal's voice repeated, " **Stay on track. Your mind is wandering. We're supposed to be searching the prison cells for anything of value.** "

"Oh, right." Zane rubbed his head, a little embarrassed. His blue eyes lit up, brightening the dark corridors considerably. He activated his comlink. "Jay? Are you there?"

His friend's face appeared on the screen on his arm. "Yeah. Found anything?"

"Negative so far. How about you? How is the searching of the temples going?"

Jay shrugged, his shoulders barely visibly on the small screen. "Nothing interesting, unless you count a pair of argyle socks in Chamille's room and a stale bit of cheese in Shade's quarters as interesting." He pushed his auburn hair out of his eyes. "Cole said he found some snakeskin down in the Ceremonial Temple, and Kai isn't having much luck in the noodle factory, and I have no idea where Lloyd is. Well, if all you wanted to do was check up on my progress, Jay over and out."

"Over and out," Zane replied, his comlink shutting off. He turned to the cell he was standing in front of. With his master key, he unlocked the door and did a thorough scan of the tiny stone prison. "Nothing here," he said aloud.

As he locked the door behind him and walked down the passage, Pixal asked, " **Not meaning to sound nosy, but I was reading your thoughts earlier, when you were not paying attention to our given task. Why does that dream fascinate you so much?** "

Zane shrugged. "I'm not sure. I do not remember someone who sounds like the man in my dream, but yet he pleads for me to remember him, as if he knows me, and has not forgotten me, even though I may have."

Pixal was quiet for a few seconds, before replying, " **I have successfully run the voice through your monitors, and have not found a match. He truly is a mystery man.** "

Zane peered into another cell, his eyes casting an icy blue glow throughout the small space. "Ah!" He covered his eyes as the light was reflected back at him. "What was that?" he asked, wincing as he dimmed his eye glow.

" **There is something metallic inside the cell,** " Pixal answered. " **We should investigate.** "

With some caution, Zane unlocked the cell door and stepped inside. He took a lantern from the hallway outside, as it cast a softer glow than his eyes. He raised the glowing torch above his head, and stepped closer toward the metallic object. When he saw what it was, he had to stifle a gasp. It was a body. The body of a Nindroid.

* * *

 **Well, I hope i left you in a good amount of suspense enough for you to want to know what happens next XD. Sorry if the chapter stinks, I was forcing myself to keep going, and I wasn't having a good writing day. But please like and comment to tell me what you think of it so far! Ninjagomasteroftheforce OUT!**

 **#God's Not Dead!**


	2. A Shocking Prisoner

**First of all: a big shout-out to Ninja Pony and the Guest who commented on my story! Thanks so much you guys!**

 **Second: I hope you enjoy this chapter! XD**

* * *

2\. A Shocking Prisoner

Zane timidly nudged the Nindroid with his foot. "How I wish we had electric lights down here," he muttered, raising his lantern a little higher to shine more light on the body.

Now that he could see it somewhat more clearly, Zane could tell that the body did not belong to a Nindroid warrior, but to a Nindroid like himself before he became the Titanium Ninja, an older model. The Nindroid was dressed in torn electric blue robes, much like the robes of a Nindroid warrior. His pale-skinned right arm was bare, but his other arm was transparent, pulsating softly with some kind of liquid inside it, emitting a faint bluish glow, barely visible. Zane could see the remains of what used to be black leather boots on the Nindroid's feet. He looked up at the Nindroid's face.

The Nindroid had a scar over his right eye, and snow-blond hair swept back on his head, in sort of a slicked-back look. His eyes were shut, as if in sleep. But there was something about the Nindroid's face that confused Zane. The slumbering expression on his face reminded Zane of himself, in some way he couldn't explain.

"Is he alive?" he whispered, almost inaudibly.

" **He is in a state of hibernation,** " Pixal replied. " **Alive, but deactivated. There is a switch located on his back that will restart his system.** "

"I'm going to free him first," Zane said. He knelt down and felt around the Nindroid's hands for a chain. He soon found the manacles clamped around the droid's wrists. Before he could unlock them, the chains crumbled at his touch. "This must be an older cell, or those are really poorly-made chains," Zane noted, touching the chains on the Nindroid's other wrist and watching them fall apart with ease.

He gently massaged the Nindroid's chafed white wrists, pushing the unconscious robot forward to get at his back. Sure enough, like Pixal had said, there was a small flip-switch on the Nindroid's small of his back, in the off position. He reached carefully behind his back and flipped the switch on.

For a moment, nothing happened. Zane knelt in front of the Nindroid, who was now leaning back against the wall, arms hanging limply at his sides. He gazed hopefully into the robot's sleeping face, waiting for a sign of life, even a small spark.

Suddenly, the Nindroid's eyelids flickered. Zane caught a glimpse of brilliant electric-blue eyes as the robot blinked. The Nindroid stared, a little groggily, into Zane's eyes. His hollow left arm twitched, and Zane saw something that he hadn't noticed before: the robot had his black gloved hand clamped around a silver handle, like a lightsaber from a Star Wars movie. The pulsating liquid in the Nindroid's arm began to gradually grow brighter, like a dim light-bulb warming up and becoming stronger. Zane could see flashes of electricity now sparking in the blue liquid, which was a substance he had never encountered before.

The Nindroid spoke. His voice was a lot like Zane's, but a bit more husky, so he sounded a little like Shade, the Master of Shadow. "W-w-where am I? What happened to me?" He pressed his hand weakly against his forehead.

"You are in Master Chen's prison," Zane replied, a little startled. "As to how you got here, I do not know."

The Nindroid gave him a curious look. "Who are you?" he asked.

"My name is Zane," the Titanium Ninja replied. "Are you feeling alright? Are you hurting?"

The Nindroid let out a little squeak of surprise, his blue eyes dilating. "Zane? But you look so . . . different."

Zane frowned, a little confused. "Do you know me in some way?"

The Nindroid's mouth curled into what resembled a sheepish smile. "Always the serious one," he said, sounding slightly more relaxed. "Yes, I do know you, and I'm not surprised you don't know me, or even know I existed." He sat up a little taller. "Ow," he muttered, rubbing the back of his blond head. "Where did you say I was again?"

"Master Chen's temple prison," Zane answered, staring at the Nindroid skeptically.

"That's right," the Nindroid said, a slight scowl crossing his face. "I remember now. I was watching the Master of Lightning and the Master of Earth 'dueling', until one of Chen's cronies tasered me. I don't remember waking up since. Until now."

Zane was even more confused. "You were a participant in the Tournament of Elements?" he asked. "But I've never seen you before-"

"Ah, but that's the thing," the Nindroid said, grinning, "I wasn't invited to the Tournament. I snuck here onboard one of Master Chen's ferries. Looking for someone, to be a little more specific."

"Who were you looking for?"

The Nindroid gave him an amused look. "I was looking for you, of course!"

"Why 'of course'?"

The Nindroid slapped himself in the forehead. "Oh, shoot, I keep forgetting, you have no idea who I am." He sat up straight, staring right into Zane's eyes. "My name is Zorane," he said, and his smile faded slightly, "and I've been looking for you ever since you defeated the Overlord."

"How come? Why am I of such importance to you?" Zane's eyes narrowed as a sudden possibility came to mind. "You were not planning to use me for some evil purpose, were you?"

Zorane shook his head violently. "No! I would never think of using you! I was looking for you, to give you something, and to tell you something. Something I've kept secret for a long time."

Zane's interest was peaked. "What is it?" he asked.

Zorane didn't answer, he just fished around in his glove for something. "I know I stuck it in here somewhere-ah, yes, here it is." He shook a small white hard-drive out of his glove. "But before I give it to you, you need to see something." He pulled up what was left of his tattered sleeve to reveal a marking, like a tattoo, inked onto his left arm. "Do you recognize this?"

Zane squinted at the mark. He _did_ recognize it; it was a symbol he hadn't seen for years. "That's Dr. Julien's emblem," he said. "My father's seal."

He stared at Zorane, and suddenly it dawned on him. "Then you're-you're-"

"Yes," Zorane said, and his blue eyes suddenly filled with tears. "I'm your brother, Zane, and I haven't seen your face in over five years. You don't know how long I've missed you."

* * *

 **Well, lookee here! Zane's got a brother! But what's he doing here? And why doesn't Zane recognize him? Those questions and more will be answered in the next chapter! Oh, and I got a new poll that's related to this story on my profile page. You should check it out! Ninjagomasteroftheforce OUT!**

 **#God's Not Dead!**


End file.
